


Half moon

by Pleasedontfindthis



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, Blood and Gore, Canonical Character Death, Costume Parties & Masquerades, Horror, Hurt No Comfort, M/M, Murder Mystery, Web Series: Tales from the SMP, time travelling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-17 03:54:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29586858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pleasedontfindthis/pseuds/Pleasedontfindthis
Summary: In a secluded manor house, Karl Jacobs meets a charming stranger with a half-moon mask for the first and last time. Or so he thinks.
Relationships: Karl Jacobs/Sapnap
Comments: 3
Kudos: 28





	Half moon

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is me trying to practice writing atmosphere.
> 
> Please enjoy it.

* * *

"You see, time is an ocean, not a garden hose.  
Space is a puff of smoke, a wisp of cloud." 

\- David Wong, John dies at the end.  


* * *

It had happened again. One moment he was crossing fields in the Dream SMP and the next he was faltering mid-step in an unfamiliar forest. Karl had long since learnt to stop being afraid when he time-travelled but he could never get rid of the disorientation and nausea that followed. 

He stumbled mindlessly through the thicket of trees, clutching at his head as the dizziness left a sour taste in his mouth and eventually, without him even noticing, the ground beneath his feet turned from soft soil to cobbled brick. Startled, Karl looked up and saw a beautiful manor house, it was charmingly old and unkempt. The cobbled driveway had weeds sprouting in the gaps and the burbling fountain was murky, it almost seemed neglected. 

It must have been late afternoon because the light outside was waning and there was a foreboding chill in the air. Karl cupped his hands together and peered through the cloudy windows, there was an inviting glow from a towering chandelier but he couldn’t make anything else out. He tried to crane his neck to look closer but his face bumped into the glass and he pulled away in surprise. In the grime of the windows, he could just about make out his reflection; he was wearing a purple mask over his eyes, adorned with rhinestone and glittering gems. It looked expensive. 

A figure moved behind the glass and Karl felt a jolt of relief at seeing another sign of life. He crossed the lawn and climbed the front steps two at a time before rapping his knuckles hard on the door. It was opened swiftly by a smartly dressed young man who also wore a mask but more astonishing than that was the keen glint in his eyes, they seemed to pierce straight through him and for a moment, Karl was lost for words. 

“Good afternoon, Sir,” the young man said, “you’re right on time.”

“I am?” Karl choked out. “Never mind that. I need your help, I’m-”

“Butler?”

The young man flinched and turned quickly away from Karl, inclining his head at the new approaching figure who had called for him. The door was still ajar and Karl could see a taller man, dressed immaculately to the nines in a dashing suit with golden trimmings. Unsurprisingly, he was wearing a mask too, more elaborate and shiny than his butler’s but still sharing the same colours of black and gold. When he spoke, his voice was pretentious and drawling.

“Is it a guest? Hurry and shut the door, the cold draft’s getting in-” 

The gentleman in question caught sight of Karl standing in the doorway and he could see the way his eyes narrowed behind his mask. “I don’t believe I know you,” he said in an icy tone, “why show up at my door without an invitation?”

Whatever Karl was about to say about getting help died in his throat as he cringed under the gentleman’s withering glare. “I’m...I was in the area. I got lost in the woods and found this place- perhaps...um you could give me some directions to the closest town and I’ll be on my way?”

The gentleman’s eyes roamed over Karl’s face sceptically. “You’re a terrible liar, boy.”

“I...am?”

“Don’t think for a moment that I don’t see straight through your little lies.”

Karl felt another surge of panic. Did he know? This had never happened before, no one in the past had ever recognised him as a time traveller. Was it his clothes? The way he spoke? Were they about to break the time continuum and create a paradox? 

“I don’t understand,” he said weakly and the gentleman’s intimidation broke into a smile. 

“I knew my parties were world-renowned but I never thought a commoner would actually show up with an outfit at the ready. It’s almost flattering!”

Karl fought the urge to heave a sigh of relief. “I’m glad.”

“I admire your bravery, boy,” the gentleman continued, tossing his braided pink hair over his shoulder with about as much grandeur as one could manage, “how about I indulge you just this once? Come in, come in! Welcome to the humble abode of yours truly, Sir Billiam the third!”

* * *

Funnily enough, behind all the pretty glass and warm lights, the interior of Billiam’s manor house was almost as decrepit as the exterior. The candles in the halls were burnt down to the stubs in unsightly piles of wax and thick cobwebs hung from just about every corner. Karl could assume that the only other two people in the house were Billiam and his quiet butler.

That is until the rest of the guests started to show up. First, a tottering, old gentleman named Oliver who wore a fox mask. Billiam, ever the gratuitous host, exchanged pleasantries with him until he grew tired of Oliver’s rambling and moved on to greet the next guest, Lord Sebastian. The man was freakishly tall and dressed in a debonair tuxedo, he offered a few words of respect before making a beeline for Billiam’s winery.

Then came Liaria who was alluring, elegant and painfully beautiful. Karl watched a little enviously as she and Billiam exchanged kisses on each other’s cheeks. 

“It’s so wonderful to see you again, Billy,” she said and her voice had an endearing accent to it, “it’s been too long!”

“Truly, Lia. You still look as radiant as ever.”

“You flatter me,” Liaria said, though she sounded pleased. “Who’s this? A new friend?”

“Something like that.”

It took Karl an embarrassingly long moment to realise that Billiam and Liaria were waiting for him to introduce himself. “Oh! I’m Karl. Karl Jacobs.”

“Karl,” Billiam said flatly, like the name itself confirmed his doubts about him being a commoner. Liaria had the decency to at least act civil about it. 

“It’s lovely to meet you, Mr Jacobs,” she said and Karl hoped his mask hid the redness in his cheeks.  _ Lovely _ . It’s  _ lovely  _ to meet you. Not nice, not great but  _ lovely _ .

Again, Billiam’s attention-span for mindless chatter evaded him as he called for the butler to dish out glasses of wine. Apparently, the final guest had yet to arrive and he was getting weirdly restless, every few minutes he’d glance at the grandfather clock and take a heavy swig from his drink. By the time the final guest showed up, Billiam had already worked his way through three glasses. 

“James!” He exclaimed with greater enthusiasm, no doubt fueled by the alcohol, “I was beginning to wonder if you’d ever show!”

‘James’ didn’t have much in the ways of an outfit; he could hardly compare with Billiam’s butler let alone hold a candle to the other guests but there was something about his ‘devil-may-care’ attitude that seemed to draw Karl in. That and the lace-up poet shirt that was very much  _ not _ laced-up. He had masses of dark curly hair and his mask formed a silvery half-moon over the right side of his face. When he smiled, Karl felt hopelessly charmed. 

“Sorry I’m late,” he said and his voice was soft and dreamy, “the driver got lost on the way here.”

“Now that’s just unfortunate. I hope you didn’t tip him!”

James tilted his head to the side with a quizzical look. “Why wouldn’t I?” 

Billiam laughed a little awkwardly and then disguised it as a cough. “How’s the wife?”

“Divorced.”

“Oh...uh..and the kids?”

“Gone.”

Karl noticed the slump in Billiam’s shoulders and had he not been wearing the mask he probably would be openly frowning. “My friend, you’re very difficult to talk to.”

James gave a non-committal hum as he looked around the room. Billiam’s attempt at a passive-aggressive jibe had fallen flat and the host looked somewhat peeved. People could only  _ dream _ of attending his parties and yet James looked like he’d rather be anywhere else. Billiam opened his mouth to say something else when James interrupted him.

“Do you have more of that?” He asked, pointing at Billiam’s half-empty wine glass. The host pursed his lips together, an agitated twitch in his fingers meant he was holding his glass a little too tightly. Then he breathed out and offered a pinched smile.

“Absolutely! No more time for idle chatter, dear boy. The party’s about to start.”

* * *

As it turns out, James was less uptight when he had a drink in his hand. It might have been down to the atmosphere too, the laughter of a tipsy crowd and the lulling melody of a waltz as Billiam’s butler played the piano. The poor man didn’t get the credit or pay that he deserved.

Whatever initial amusement Karl had brought Billiam had worn off very quickly and he was free to roam around without so much as a second glance. Karl was grateful enough that the authorities hadn’t been called the second he’d set foot on the property. 

“You seem tense.”

Karl looked up and said rather stupidly, “huh?”

It was James who had spoken, he was leaning on the counter away from the riff-raff, swilling his wine around idly. “Do you not like parties? You look uncomfortable.”

“No more than you do.”

“I’m not uncomfortable,” James said sagely, “I’m out of place.”

Now that Karl was closer, James seemed awfully familiar. Most people would’ve dismissed the feeling as a bewildering moment of déjà vu but for Karl, it was more than just that. Looking at James had a dizzying effect that he couldn’t shake. He couldn’t think of a name but he remembered the way they made him feel as clearly as the day. Was it because they shared the same face and build? Or was it the way James looked when he stared off into space? Just thinking of it made Karl feel homesick. 

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing, It’s just...you remind me a lot of someone I know.”

James arched his eyebrow. “That’s strange. I was just thinking the opposite.”

“How so?”

“I’ve never met someone like you before. I believe I’d remember clearly if I did.”

“Was that a compliment?”

“It was an observation,” James corrected and he turned his head so Karl could only see the half-moon. “Tell me about this person: are they handsome?”

“Yes!” Karl said eagerly and for an instant, he saw a figure in his mind’s eye. He clung to it. “He looks like you except he’s not so still. He’s always up and moving, always impulsive and very quick to laugh…”

Karl trailed off and James turned to look at him properly. He wanted to say more, he wanted to remember a name and why he seemed to love this person so much but the more he thought, the less clear the image became. It was like filling the gaps in a dream or trying to piece together a face from memory. 

“He sounds nice,” James said. A small comfort. 

“Yes…” Karl murmured, but he felt less sure of himself. “Sorry. It’s been a long time and I can’t seem to remember him anymore.”

“It’s alright. Here- to new friends.” James held up his drink with a sympathetic twinkle in his eye and smiled when Karl clinked their glasses together. He knocked back the rest of his wine as Karl tentatively sipped his. “Enjoy the rest of the party, Karl.”

“You’re not coming?”

“No, I think I’ll stay right here. I’ll see you before the party ends.”

* * *

Karl hadn’t wanted to leave him. Out of all the glamorous guests, James had been the only one who was even remotely approachable. As Karl navigated his way through the gilded halls of the manor house, he thought about stealing into one of the bedrooms and simply hiding until the party was finished but a strange tapping noise caught his attention instead.

_ Tap. Tap. Tap. _

It seemed to be coming from down the hall. Everyone else was in the ballroom, Karl could still hear their buzzing activity but as he drew closer to the sound, the taps got more urgent, almost turning into thumps. At first, Karl considered the possibility of walking in on two of the guests doing...well,  _ something _ but the thought emptied out of his head when he heard a faint gurgling. 

His pace picked up until he was almost sprinting down the winding halls, only to stop short in gaping horror as he caught sight of Billiam’s large fish tank along with the flailing body of Sir Oliver, his face twisted into contorted panic as he thumped desperately against the glass. 

Karl didn’t have time to think, he couldn’t even think of  _ how _ Oliver had gotten into the fish tank when there were no visible openings and the carpet was dry. He grabbed one of the candelabras, the candles were already so burnt out that they immediately extinguished themselves. He wound his arm back and launched forwards, swinging the candelabra with as much strength as he could muster. 

He had never been particularly strong, he was gangly with noodle arms but he’d at least been hoping to see a  _ crack _ . Instead, the candelabra bounced off the glass with no effect at all. Oliver kept scratching with his nails, bubbles streaming out of his mouth and nose as he struggled for breath. Karl grit his teeth and tried again and again to break the glass but to no avail. 

“Help!” He screamed, his voice shrill with blind frustration and the fear of seeing someone drown before his very eyes, “Someone! Please help me!”

He heard footsteps and voices approaching and he willed them to hurry up. His arms were aching and his hair was falling into his eyes, blinding him. His entire body was covered with cold sweat and he was so focused on breaking this titanium glass that he didn’t realise the other guests had gathered until he heard Liaria’s terrified shriek. 

Someone wrenched the candelabra from him and he looked up in time to see James take an incredible swing, the muscles in his arms straining with the effort. But still, the glass wouldn’t break. 

A hand clapped onto James’ shoulder, halting him from trying again and he swiveled around to see Lord Sebastian staring past him. “It’s too late, boyo,” he said gravely, “the old man’s dead.”

“How?” Liaria whimpered, “how did this happen?”

Karl wished he could say something to comfort her but he had no answers. His heart was pounding in his ears as he stared up at Oliver’s still and floating body. James was faintly trembling beside him, the candelabra still gripped tightly in his hand. 

“He was old and senile,” Billiam said, “it’s wholly possible that he fell in and couldn’t get out, the poor soul. Butler, call for the authorities, won’t you?”

This explanation didn’t make sense, Karl  _ knew _ in his heart of hearts that Billiam was spouting bullshit but for some reason, he decided to accept it. Of course, Oliver was the oldest guest here. He just fell in. That was all. However, even as he was thinking this Karl couldn’t help but glance at each of the guests with thinly veiled suspicion. 

Liaria was weeping softly into her hands and Billiam was attempting to console her with his arms protectively curled over her shoulders. Lord Sebastian was still trying to talk sense into James and Billiam’s butler was turning the dials on the nearby rotary phone, going through the motions of calling the police.

His instincts were telling him that there was a killer in their midst and as much as he wanted to deny them, it was really beginning to look that way. The masquerade, the select company and the time setting, it was the textbook definition of a locked room murder mystery.

“It’s like playing Cluedo,” he muttered to himself. 

“Clue...dough?” Lord Sebastian asked and Karl shook his head, lapsing back into silence. The only sound he could hear was the wind back of the rotary phone and in his haze of adrenaline, he wondered how long it took to make a call. 

“I can’t stay here,” Liaria sobbed. “How are you all so quiet and calm when a man has just died?! You’re all lunatics! Call me a cab, Billy. I’m going home.”

“Lia, don’t be absurd! It’s already gone dark, no cab will come out at this hour.”

Upon hearing this, Liaria’s tears fell faster and she swiped them away almost violently. “You mean to say I’m stuck here? With- with a corpse?”

“Come now, Lia,” Billiam said soothingly, “I’ll prepare a nice room for you and I’ll fetch a cab for you first thing in the morning, how does that sound?”

Liaria wrenched her arm free from Billiam’s grasp, her face the picture of fury even with the mask on. “Don’t touch me!” She snapped. “I’m leaving now and you can’t stop me.”

“Lia-” 

Before Billiam could even finish, she spun on her heel and darted back the way she came, even the butler was too slow to stop her. “Damn,” Billiam muttered and he made to follow her but a sudden gust of hot air blew through the halls and extinguished all the lights. 

The entire house plunged into darkness and the piercing scream that followed shortly after echoed in their ears like crashing thunder. 

* * *

Everything happened in a matter of minutes. The hot gust of wind made Karl sweat; it was like standing in a furnace, the heat of it almost stifling and then seconds later, the house grew very cold. He tried to reach out for James who, theoretically, should have been  _ right there _ next to him but his hands just grasped at empty space. 

“Hello?! James?!” 

There was no response, in fact, everything was practically silent aside from a strange thrum. It was like listening to the reverberations of a drum and with each passing vibration, Karl felt the ground shift beneath him. He couldn’t see anything but he had the strangest feeling that something was seeing  _ him _ , a hundred eyes needling into him like pins in a cushion and then, Liaria’s scream. 

The sound of it was so loud that it seemed to ring in his ears and, as quickly as they blew out, the candles relit themselves again and Karl was swathed in the bathing glow of flickering flames. Everyone was standing in the same spots as if nothing had happened, although they all wore the same expression of disorientation and confusion. 

“Liaria- ” Karl started but Billiam was already off, following the direction of the scream without so much as a word. The others glanced at each other and quickly followed in suit. 

Surely, she’d be alright? The scream was just a result of being startled by the dark, they’d find her nearby, stunned but unharmed. Karl kept trying to reason with himself, reassuring his mind as if his heart wasn’t beating jack-rabbit fast. Turns out it was all wishful thinking anyway. 

They rounded a corner and found Billiam, kneeling next to Liaria’s crumpled body. She was slumped against a stack of wine barrels and Karl thought one of them had burst because there was a steady stream of red staining the dull carpet but as he gingerly stepped forward he found that it wasn’t wine but vivid, crimson blood. It flowed from a gaping wound in Liaria’s chest, tarnishing her white dress like paint on a canvas. Splatters of it had even splashed up onto her lovely face and Billiam tried to wipe it away with his thumb but it smeared.

Lord Sebastian sucked in a sharp breath as James began to speak, voicing the one thought that was on everyone’s mind. “Billiam, what the hell is going on here?”

“Dammit...how should I know?”

“What do you mean ‘you don’t know’?” James hissed, barely containing his anger, “this is  _ your _ house.  _ Your _ party. Who else could have done this?”

Billiam rose to his feet, sizing James up with a menacing glare. “You honestly think I would do this to Lia?”

“You could have.”

“For all I know it could’ve been you!” Billiam prodded a finger into James’ chest, forcing him to take a step back. “How dare you accuse  _ me _ of murder in my own home!”

“I always thought you were suspicious. You lure us here into the middle of nowhere and plan to have us killed off one by one. Is that it?”

“Watch your words around me, boy.”

“Or what? You’ll have me murdered?”

Lord Sebastian cleared his throat pointedly. “Gentlemen, please. We’re failing to see a large factor here.”

Karl wasn’t able to discern much about Sebastian’s nature other than the fact that he might be something of an alcoholic but as he delicately adjusted his mask in a thoughtful manner, his eyes landed on him and Karl knew all he needed to know. Lord Sebastian was sly and scheming, he gauged reactions by sitting back amidst the chaos so that when he did point his finger, he’d be the most credible person in the room. 

Sure enough, Billiam and James followed his gaze and finally seemed to remember that there was, in fact, another guest that was unaccounted for. “I dare say Mr Jacobs is somewhat of an anomaly. He showed up uninvited and took advantage of Sir Billiam’s goodwill. Ask yourselves this: is someone of his standing truly above murder?”

Billiam straightened, stepping away from James to scrutinise Karl. “You do raise an excellent point, Sebastian.”

“How could it be me?” Karl exclaimed, his voice pitching, “I was in the room with all of you when Liaria was killed! We discovered her body together!”

“Are you suggesting there’s another person in the manor?” James asked quietly and everyone turned back to Billiam who lifted his shoulder in a shrug.

“Not that I know of,” he answered.

“What about that butler of yours?”

“My butler?” Billiam repeated scornfully, “he can barely serve drinks let alone commit  _ murder _ .”

“I’m still inclined to think it was Mr Jacobs.”

“Of course you would say that,” James said coldly, “we don’t have any proof. There’s got to be an intruder in the house and we should find them fast.”

“What happened to ‘calling the authorities’?”

“The line’s dead.” It was the first time the butler had said anything in a long time and everyone jumped, only just realising that he’d been there all along. It was incredibly unnerving, the man was just so damn quiet. 

“We should search the house,” Karl tried and Sebastian’s eyes flashed. 

“I’ll be coming with you, Mr Jacobs,” he said viciously, “can’t let you have free reign over the house and its remaining guests now, can we?”

“For the last time, Sebastian: I didn’t do it!”

“That’s  _ Lord  _ Sebastian to you.”

“Karl,” James’ soft voice cut through his agitation like a knife slicing through warm butter and Karl breathed in deep, willing himself to calm down, “I can come with you if you’d like.”

He wanted to say yes. He didn’t want to be in the same room as Sebastian, let alone search for a killer with him. He wanted to be with James, with someone he knew would keep him safe but looking at Liaria’s body made his resolve harden. “No. I’ll be alright.”

James looked a little crestfallen at that and Karl hurried to correct himself. “It’d be better if we cover as much ground as possible. You don’t need to worry about me.”

James glanced at Sebastian and then back down to him. He looked dubious and apprehensive. “If you’re sure…”

“I’m sure.”

“Then that settles it,” Billiam said, “I do hope to see you soon, gentlemen.”

* * *

Everyone split off in different directions. James headed for the west wing and Billiam took to inspecting the library. The butler obediently went down to the kitchens and cellars at Billiam’s request which left the upstairs bedrooms for Karl and Sebastian.

When Sebastian said he’d come with Karl he clearly didn’t mean he’d help. With every room they entered he’d linger in the doorway and wait as Karl opened wardrobes and checked under the beds. Every now and then he’d throw in a snide comment that Karl tried to ignore. For the most part, he was lost in his own thoughts.

A lot of things weren’t adding up about this murder. If Billiam was so sure that the only members of the household were himself and the butler then who could have drowned Oliver and killed Liaria if not an intruder? That and the fact that the lights had only been out for a matter of minutes and the likelihood of one of the guests killed Liaria and sprinting back in that time was highly unlikely. 

His mind wandered briefly to the butler who was, without a doubt, the most inconspicuous person around. He could’ve been anywhere and no one would have been the wiser. But his suit had been immaculately clean after Liaria’s death and he’d also been in the room when the lights came back on, not a hair out of place. The only legitimate explanation was that there had to be an intruder that Billiam didn’t know of but as Karl declared another room empty, he was beginning to question if even that was sound. 

Maybe he just didn’t want to think about the eyes watching him when the lights had gone out. 

“This room’s empty too.”

“Are you sure?” Sebastian asked with a sneer, “or are you trying to hide them?”

“You would know if you actually looked around yourself,” Karl retorted, “instead, you’re just hellbent on tormenting me.”

Sebastian scoffed and then reached out and grabbed Karl’s arm as he walked past. He lowered his voice and said in a menacing tone, “You may have Bill and James wrapped around your finger but not me. Not for one second.”

Karl shook him off, disliking the way the man’s bony fingers had felt against his skin. “I’ll keep a note of that,” he muttered as he moved onto the next room. True to his word, Sebastian followed him and this time he even opened a drawer or two. Karl, however, was quickly tiring of his rotten company and his searches were getting more erratic. He was overturning bookshelves, tearing at the bed sheets and flinging open the windows to the point where it was more about property damage than finding a killer. 

His frustration seemed to amuse Sebastian, who lit a match and touched it to a cigar he’d pulled out of his pocket. Karl watched him hold the flame there and then watched him frown and pull his head away. The cigar wasn’t lighting. 

Karl had a premonition. He couldn’t remember when his senses and instincts had grown so sharp and he had a strange feeling that someone had taught him but he couldn’t for the life of him recall who. He jumped to his feet as Sebastian raised his match with a quizzical look. The flame flickered and then extinguished itself. 

Karl flung the wardrobe doors open, shoving aside the empty coat hangers and climbing in. “Sebastian! Get in!” 

The stubborn lord gave him a strange look and a refusal that was a far cry from polite but, just as Karl thought, the lights in the room went out with the same powerful rush of hot air and Sebastian was barely able to contain his surprise. Karl could hear him stumbling around blindly and then, moments later, felt him cram himself next to him in the wardrobe, slamming the doors shut after him. 

“This is beneath me,” he whispered but there was a terrified quiver in his voice. Karl hushed him. The wardrobe was far too small for two people, especially if it was someone as tall as Sebastian. Karl tried his best to make room, pulling his knees up to his chin and wrapping his arms around them but Sebastian wasn’t so generous. His pointy elbows dug into Karl’s ribs and he insisted on stretching his legs to the point where Karl was pressed right into the corner. 

They tried to listen out for footsteps or movement but it was the same as before. An ugly hum that was so weirdly ambient that it could’ve gone unnoticed as background noise, but the more you listened the more apparent it became. This time there was no drumbeat, no pause between the vibrations. This time it just droned on and on until Karl could feel it shaking his brain. 

He shut his eyes tightly but it made no difference. He still felt that prickling sensation all over his body. The unmistakable feeling of being watched by something that was much closer than it was before. A noise cut through the continuous hum. A sinister voice that only Karl could hear, it sounded much like corrugated glass. 

_ ‘We see you.’ _

Karl felt cold air strike his heated face and he gulped it down into his lungs, not realising just how musty it had been in the wardrobe. There was a crack of light now. Karl didn’t know when exactly he’d opened his eyes but he could see a single, narrow shaft of the bedroom, lit dimly by moonlight from the open window. Then he realized why this was so strange.

The wardrobe was open. 

The crack in the door grew wider, letting more light spill in and Karl began to shake. Wrapped around the edge of the door was a pale hand, its fingers long and thin like a pianist’s. There was dirt and grime under the scuffed fingernails. They made no sound, the wardrobe didn’t creak as they slowly pulled it open.

_ ‘Found you.’ _

Bloodshot eyes - wide and shiny - stared into Karl’s. He couldn’t see the rest of the face - Hell, he didn’t even know if it had a face. For all he knew, it could’ve just been a disembodied voice, a pair of eyes and a single hand that was beginning to creep down. 

Karl couldn’t look away. The eyes didn’t either but somehow he could sense the hand moving, the fingers inching down the door frame until they finally locked around Sebastian’s ankle and started to pull. Sebastian struggled, slapping, grappling and writhing in terror as he was dragged half out of the wardrobe. His limbs smacked into Karl, jostling him -  _ pleading _ with him to help.

But Karl couldn’t move. The bloodshot eyes were transfixed on him, they hadn’t blinked once and the crimson veins stood out like lines of thread. Karl broke eye contact first, he pressed himself further into his corner, staring into the darkness like he still believed in childish logic. 

_ If I can’t see you then you can’t see me.  _

There was a terrible, wet sound like someone was crushing an egg in their fist. A slow cracking of snapped bones and gushing blood. It seemed to go on for ages. Sebastian stopped flailing and something warm seeped into Karl’s clothes, soaking down to his skin where it chaffed. 

Karl sat there for a while. Then the lights came back on and he sat for a while longer. Eventually, his limbs began to tingle so painfully that he had to move. He didn’t know where to look and he was afraid to close his eyes so he just stared at the bottom left corner of his vision. He pushed his side of the wardrobe open, disentangling himself carefully so that he wouldn’t have to touch Sebastian’s body. 

He moved at a snail’s pace and even then it still winded him. He couldn’t see where he was going either, his gaze still rooted to the carpet. Everywhere he went he could still feel those haunted eyes watching him and even as he wrapped his arms around himself he didn’t feel safe. 

“Karl?” 

Footsteps. Fast-approaching. Strong hands grabbed onto his shoulders. Karl let out a whimper, struggling out of their hold and they let go. His eyes travelled up fearfully. 

A half-moon. 

“James…”

“Karl,” James said again, sounding relieved. “The lights went out and I couldn’t find you anywhere-” 

Karl fell forwards, burrowing his head into James’ chest with an undignified sob. Capable arms closed around him in a comforting embrace, petting his hair. But just as Karl even considered feeling secure again, James pulled away and held him at arm’s length.

“You’re bleeding.”

Karl shook his head. It was difficult and painful to talk given how dry his throat was. “Not...mine.”

James’ expression changed. “Where’s Sebastian?”

An awful silence passed between them and James lifted his hands from Karl’s shoulders, they hovered uselessly like he didn’t know what to do with them. He didn’t know if he should strike Karl down or run away. “You...Oh God- Karl-”

“It wasn’t me,” Karl insisted, trying to swallow hard before he spoke again. “I promise it wasn’t me- I- we were hiding- together in the wardrobe and a hand- there were eyes and they dragged Sebastian out-” 

“You realise how this looks, don’t you?” James interrupted. He looked pale and shaken. “Karl...No...Sebastian was right!”

“No! Just  _ listen  _ to me!  _ Please! _ ”

But James was shivering with troubled energy. He couldn’t stay still, it was like he was ready to bolt at any given moment and Karl felt that same sense of déjà vu again, although this time it was even stronger. He cupped the sides of James’ face, dragging him down into a crude imitation of a kiss. 

Karl didn’t usually show an interest in such forms of affection and this was less of a kiss than it was smashing faces together. He just wanted James to shut up and listen and also because he missed the person that James reminded him of. 

“Run with me,” he said when he pulled away. “We have to get out of this house together, do you understand? Come with me.”

A hundred types of conflict passed over James’ face before he let out a shaky breath and gave the slightest tilt of his head. Karl kissed his forehead gratefully before taking his hand and the two of them started to sprint back towards the main door. 

Karl had overestimated himself though. After his traumatic experience, no amount of adrenaline could carry him to move faster than a staggering jog so James overtook him, still holding him by the hand. He couldn’t tell what James was thinking but he seemed eager enough to get out of the estate too, regardless of whether Karl was the killer or not.

It was the kind of blind trust that could get a man killed.

They skidded across the lobby and Karl eagerly lunged for the door handle, twisting it. It was locked.  _ Shit _ . Karl rattled the door like he could rip it off its hinges and escape that way but it was no use. Noodle arms. He turned to ask if James could try and use his insane strength to kick the door down but he was looking at something across the hall. 

“Is something the matter, Mr Jacobs?”

Of course. The butler. “The door’s locked,” James said. “Do you have the key?”

“You found the killer?” The butler asked, eyeing Karl’s bloodied clothes. James made an impatient noise. 

“It doesn’t matter. We just have to leave quickly. Do you have the key or not?”

There was a moment of hesitation before the butler nodded courteously. He crossed the room swiftly and soundlessly, reaching into his pocket as he did. James held out his hand impatiently and Karl thought briefly back to the start of the party when the butler had been playing a waltz on the piano.

He looked at the butler’s hands as he withdrew a silvery object from his suit pocket. Pale hands with long, thin fingers. Like a pianist. Karl’s heart leapt into his throat.

“James-”

Quick as anything, the butler charged forwards, closing the distance between them faster than the eye could blink. He stabbed the silver object in an upward motion into James’ gut and twisted. 

James made a choked sound of surprise and crumpled to his knees. The butler gripped his shoulder and pushed the knife deeper, all the way up to the hilt and then he yanked it out through his side, leaving a crescent arc of bright blood in its wake. James jolted with the movement and then fell. 

Karl let the butler escape. Well, escape was the wrong word for it; the butler simply melted back into the shadows of the house like he was never there and Karl let him. He thought nothing else but of James bleeding out on the floor like a slaughtered animal. 

He kept making these awful noises, similar to Oliver’s gurgling except this time his lungs were filling with his own blood. His legs kicked out in pain as he held his stomach, trying to force his torn guts back into place and Karl fell to his knees beside him, pulling James’ head into his lap as he pressed his hands hard against the wound. James choked out a pained sound and spat blood onto the floor.

“Oh God,” Karl whimpered. “Please- God, not you too. Please. Please.”

But his appeals for divine assistance fell on deaf ears. James was past seeing or hearing anything, his kicks weakened into twitches and his fingers scratched feebly against the carpet. He probably couldn’t even think through the agony but Karl kept rambling, tears dripping onto the half-moon on James’ face. 

“Mr Jacobs!”

Karl looked up with a heaving sob and saw his host descending the stairs two at a time, his resplendent suit and hair only slightly rumpled. “Billiam! Help us!”

He came to a stop over James’ body, sucking in sharp breaths of air as he stared down at him in dismay. “Good lord,” he murmured, “I had hoped to get to you two in time but it seems I’m too late.”

“No- he’s still alive. We can still save him.”

“Mr Jacobs-”

“GODAMMIT. DO SOMETHING!”

Billiam seemed taken aback by the fury in Karl’s words but it quickly melted into desperation and empathy. “There’s nothing we can do for him,” he said gently, “but you and I should hide quickly.”

“We can’t just leave him! I know who the killer is: it’s-”

“My butler. I know,” Karl looked up at him in surprise and Billiam just shook his head, signalling that there was no time. “He came after me but a few moments ago and I barely escaped with my life. He’ll be after us again, no doubt, which is why I implore that we move swiftly.”

“But-”

“Mr Jacobs,  _ please _ . It seems we are the only two left alive. We cannot save James but we may be able to save ourselves.”

Karl looked past Billiam’s face at the candles decorating the chandelier. He had a feeling that the lights would go out soon. He glanced back down at James’ head in his lap, carefully stroking his dark hair out of his face. He had gone very still. 

“Mr Jacobs?”

Karl didn’t respond. He slipped his fingers under the ribbon holding the mask to his face and pulled it free. The half-moon came away in his palm and Karl tenderly shifted James to the floor. When he stood up, he made sure to look straight ahead. 

“Let’s go.”

* * *

As it turned out, Billiam’s estate was more suited for Agatha Christie than Karl initially thought. As his host led him down winding halls, Karl began to lose his sense of direction and when Billiam pulled back a large picture frame to reveal a hidden staircase, Karl felt his queasiness return. What was a masquerade murder mystery without a couple of secret passageways after all?

Billiam led the way but the further they descended down the staircase, the darker it became and soon enough, Karl couldn’t see Billiam at all. He gripped the crumbling handrail and felt his way through the dark, heart racing with every step. It felt like they’d been walking for hours.

The air grew hotter and more stifling. Beads of sweat trailed down the back of Karl’s neck as he tugged on his collar, huffing his damp hair out of his eyes. Were they walking straight down into hell? It would only be fitting. He paused briefly to catch his breath but it was like sticking your face in a kettle and trying to inhale the steam. The backs of his eyeballs burned and his nose had gone painfully numb.

He could assume that the lights had gone out and the butler was on the hunt again but the passageway was so well-hidden and they were already so far down that he seemed like less of a threat. Karl was more worried about the fact that he couldn’t hear Billiam ahead of him anymore.

Living beings had to breathe and until today, the humans that he knew were all living. Sebastian liked to breathe through his mouth, James breathed through his nose and held it in the back of his throat and Billiam breathed in short, winded pants. That is until just a moment ago. 

Karl panicked. Had he reached the bottom already? His fingers barely brushed against the handrail as he flew down the spiralling stairs at a dizzying pace. The darkness seemed less oppressive the further he went and he could see the faintest touches of a reddish glow. 

Then Karl tripped on something and was sent sprawling forwards into a pile of leathery vines. 

“There you are, Karl!” Billiam said pleasantly and he plucked him up from the trailing vines like he weighed nothing at all. “I was beginning to wonder if you’d ever show!”

Karl just gawked in astonishment at his surroundings as Billiam politely brushed the dirt off his clothes. The room might have been big at one point, in fact, it almost looked like it was an open plan of the house’s foundation but Karl couldn’t tell because every inch of space was taken up by crimson shrubbery. The vines that he had tripped over snaked on for miles at a time and when he moved a hanging plant out of the way he saw that they took root in a bulbous monstrosity that reached the ceiling. 

The strange thrumming that he’d heard every time the lights went out had reached a crescendo and it was coming from that...that  _ thing _ . It pulsed and oozed grotesquely like it was constantly growing and expanding in its mission to engulf more space. It wasn’t remotely human, it had no mouth to scream with, no nose to breathe from and it certainly didn’t have eyes and yet...Karl could feel it watching him. 

“Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?” Billiam asked softly and Karl jumped in his skin, forgetting that his host was ever there. 

“What...what is that thing?”

Billiam didn’t take kindly to his disgusted tone of voice. “It’s the egg,” he explained. He picked up James’ mask like it was litter in a rose garden and Karl snatched it back, holding it to his chest like it was his last tether. 

“You’re saying this- this  _ egg _ has been down here the entire time? And you  _ knew? _ ”

“It’s been here since the beginning,” Billiam said, caressing one of the vines that hung down from the ceiling. “I just happened to find it here in this secluded forest. I had this house built around it where it will no doubt outlast us all.”

Billiam broke off from speaking. At first Karl thought he was reminiscing over something but his head was tilted gently to the side and his eyes were closed. The egg made a faint groaning noise and Billiam nodded. “It says it knows you...It would like to speak with you.”

How? Karl clutched at his head as a spike of pain shot through him. How did it know him? Just what the hell was he forgetting? He tried to think, pulling dregs of memories up to the surface but they were useless. He couldn’t recall anything before setting foot on the estate that very afternoon. 

He was empty. 

There was a course, grating sound like someone scraping rust off a knife and Billiam tilted his head and smiled, his face aglow with the egg’s red light. “Did you say something funny?”

The grating sound got louder and Karl realised the egg was laughing at him.

Why couldn’t he remember anything? Who was he? Who was Karl Jacobs? His entire body was covered in sweat and blood that didn’t belong to him. He looked down at the half-moon in his trembling hands and felt an ache of loss and grief. Who did James remind him of? Why did his heart ache so badly when he tried to think of them? 

Give me a name! Give me anything!

“I think the egg likes you," Billiam said fondly, “I’ll admit, I thought you were a funny character at first but who’s to turn away fresh blood?”

“Fresh...blood?”

“Of course. We’re all just fertiliser for something bigger than ourselves, aren’t we? Humans  _ are _ frightfully small, after all.”

“Ferti-  _ You _ ,” Karl shoved Billiam hard and he gave a surprised gasp as he tripped over a vine and stumbled backwards. Still, Karl approached, towering over him like an imposing shadow. “James was right about you all along! You really did lure people here and for what? To become  _ fertiliser _ for this disgusting monstrosity!”

“And I’d do it again,” Billiam snarled, his amicable facade slipping away. “Admit it. You had your fun, didn’t you? Running around the house like a little detective, trying to solve a murder that was  _ far _ beyond your reckoning.”

“They were your friends! They trusted you and you killed them without a second thought-”

“It wasn’t a senseless slaughter, Mr Jacobs. It was a sacrifice.”

Karl paused and Billiam took that moment of vulnerability to turn the tides. He straightened to his full height and tossed his mask to the side. Karl tried to look him in the eyes but immediately dropped his gaze to the floor. It would’ve been easier to look down the barrel of a gun. 

“Didn’t you say from the start that this felt like a game? What was it again...Cluedo?”

“How do you know about that? It hasn’t been invented yet.”

“The egg has a wealth of knowledge that it likes to impart on me. Provided I help feed it - it’s a symbiotic relationship.”

The egg can tell the future. This abomination knew of Karl’s origins - it  _ knew _ the real him, not this empty husk with no memories. Billiam covered his mouth to hide his sly smile but there was an unmistakable glint in his red-tinted eyes. 

“What would you like to know, Mr Jacobs?”

A name. A face. What his life was like outside of this pocket dimension. 

Karl wanted to know so badly. He was shaking and crying with the want to  _ know _ . He was mourning for things he didn’t even realise, for people he didn’t know and yet...even with this terrible suffering he still grit his teeth and snarled out a very willful, “ _ No. _ ”

“What?”

“I said  _ ‘no’. _ ”

Billiam just sighed. “For some people there simply is no hope,” he murmured, more to himself than the seething man before him. “Ah well, what a waste. You don’t even know what you’re missing.”

Karl laughed at that. It was a bitter laugh that surprised even him. He just found it so out of place and funny; what Billiam didn’t seem to understand was that it was  _ because _ he knew what was missing that he felt the strength to refuse. The emptiness in him was so vast that his life must’ve been truly full with beautiful things, it could mean nothing else. 

He would have been comforted by this had he not signed his own death warrant. “Are you going to kill me now?

“No. Not me. You and I have both established that I’m not the real murderer here. Remember?”

Karl felt a presence behind him and a hand curled into his hair, yanking his head back to expose his throat to the steel edge of a knife. A knife that was still crusty with the blood of its previous victims.

“I hope you don’t think too badly of me, Mr Jacobs,” Billiam said blithely. “I am not so heartless as to revel in the deaths of my friends- and I do believe that you and I had the potential to be. Friends, I mean.”

Karl wanted to say something brave and cunning but every time he swallowed he would feel the knife scrape against his skin and that was enough to shut him up. 

Panic.

He was breathing too fast and was whimpering like a kicked puppy. Karl didn’t have a shred of dignity left, he was openly terrified and they all knew it. All his big talk and lip service had done nothing but make his ending seem that much more shameful. 

Liaria, Oliver, Sebastian and James - every person in the world who faced death like this thought the same thing,  _ It won’t happen to me. _ How could it be possible that this whole time they were nothing but extras? Cannon fodder? The Universe’s way of filling in blanks? 

Please wait! I still have things I have to do! People to remember and a life to fulfill! 

_ I’m too young to die! _

“Don’t be so upset, Karl,” Billiam said, not even hiding the fact that the Egg had been telling him everything Karl had been thinking. “We all knew that death isn’t something that only happens to other people.”

The knife ripped a hole into his throat and as denial followed Karl into his unconsciousness, he briefly thought about how lonely it was to die on his own. 

**Author's Note:**

> Maybe one day I'll get there lol.  
> 


End file.
